While this is not the first time one of my patterns has been on the cover of a magazine (this was the fun first), it is the first time it’s on the cover of a printed magazine that my friends and family (and me, I suppose!) will be able to see on the newsstands in Joann Fabric and Barnes and Noble and the like. The issue came out Feb 1st in the UK, and will be showing up in stores in the US in 3-5 weeks. Please do let me know when you see it! If you’re techy, you could also get this issue instantly to your phone or tablet with the digital issues on Apple Newsstand, Zinio or Google Play.

Inspired by a tile pattern I saw a couple of years ago, this quilt is a great one to use for color play (or colour play!). It looks great in any colorway, and the fun accent block helps feature your focal or accent fabric.

I love the styling done by Love Patchwork & Quilting for the photos! I made this quilt using Kona cottons from Robert Kaufman and pieced and quilted it with Aurifil thread. I used 40wt thread in coordinating colors for quilting to make it a bit more substantial and echoed the geometric angles of the quilt, and I really like the aesthetic of the straight lines and the ease of quilting with my walking foot. This is a fun pattern and I do hope you’ll check it out!

Also, in the same color theme, I’m having a pattern sale through February 14th with all of my heart-themed patterns 20% off.

I made a BIG Love Struck block to help spread the world, and I think it eventually will become a festive pillow. Each heart-tipped arrow finishes at 6″ x 18″ and was a really quick sew, so if you’re looking for a fast and fun Valentine’s project, the BIG Love Struck pattern might be the perfect one! (or Hello, Love… or Love Struck… or Love is the Key… or…<3)

I’m not typically one to sew for the holidays, but in retrospect, perhaps it’s because I don’t begin my projects early enough to make it possible! Enter: Christmas in July. I’m beginning to understand why the term “Christmas in July” exists–since if you want to hand stitch gifts, you should be beginning in July! If you are the type who does like to sew holiday gifts, or even just someone who loves a great deal, today is your day! Note: This sale has ended for the year!

I’m excited to be joining a fantastic group of pattern designers to bring you a Christmas in July pattern bundle, available for $25 for three days only. There are 23+ great patterns included, as well as some great sponsor prizes. Both of my top selling foundation paper pieced patterns Lupine & Love Struck are included in the bundle, as well as a variety of other fantastic patterns by talented designers, both holiday themed and all purpose patterns great to have in your library.

As an extra special incentive, if you buy the bundle from me, you will also be entered to win a Quilter’s Planner 2017 Starter Kit, which includes a 2017 Quilter’s Planner as well as pens, stickers, and highlighters to help you stay organized, productive, and inspired! (Note: The winner will receive the starter kit as soon as it’s available, expected to be shipping in October). Congratulations to Sharon, the winner of the Quilter’s Planner Starter Kit!

Many thanks to Jen Frost from Faith & Fabric, who has organized this bundle sale and helped get everyone together to offer this great deal. Here’s a bit more about what’s included in the purchase of the bundle.

You will get immediate digital download of all of the patterns shown above, plus:

– two coupon codes: one for Gotham Quilts and one for Sulky
– one entry to win a free Craftsy Class
– one entry to win a 6mo subscription to Make Modern

PLUS, as I mentioned above, if you buy the bundle HERE, you will also be entered to win a 2017 Quilter’s Planner Starter Kit, care of yours truly and my dear friend Stephanie (Late Night Quilter), the mastermind behind the Quilter’s Planner. Talk about Christmas in July! Again, congrats to Sharon!

The bundle is no longer available since the sale has ended for the year. Stay tuned next July, and for those of you who purchased the bundle, happy stitching! The bundle is available in my Payhip shop, and will only be live for 72 hours beginning RIGHT NOW! This sale runs from Monday 3pm EST until Thursday 3pm EST, so be sure to catch it now. Once you purchase the bundle, greatly expand your library of sewing and quilt patterns, and get sewing, please share your creations using #sewchristmasinjuly on social media. We would all love to see what you create!

Today I am excited to release my newest foundation paper pieced (FPP) pattern, Bean Sprout. Today is arbor day, so for now I’m thinking of it as more of a tree sprout, but regardless of which species you’re growing, this block pattern is ready to roll!

To me, the bean sprout is the epitome of spring, new life, and the wonder of discovery. I have watched my children’s excitement over the first sprout of newly planted seeds, and wanted to capture that fresh promise. This block is perfect for the gardeners among you, and I can see it as a focal block in a quilt, or even turned into pillows, tote bags, wall hangings, or table runners.

You may remember my first iteration of this Bean Sprout block, which I turned into a pillow and donated to my daughter’s school for their annual fundraiser auction/raffle. Since then, I made a few tiny tweaks to the pattern to make it a bit more versatile, easier to piece, and clearer to follow. The block finishes at 8″x12″, but can easily be made into a 12″x12″ finished block by adding two side strips, which is explained in the pattern.

The pattern includes clear piecing diagrams, sewing tips, and templates for the 8″x12″ finished block, with various shading to help with accurate fabric placement. Quarter inch seam allowances are included on all pattern pieces to help ensure easy piecing, and a 1″ reference square is on every printable page so that scale can be confirmed. Full foundation paper piecing instructions are not included in the pattern, but I have a thorough paper piecing tutorial HERE. Lee Heinrich from Freshly Pieced also has a fabulous tutorial on the Bernina We All Sew blog HERE, which will ensure you will never miss corners again. Knowing all of the information in these two tutorials will help demystify FPP, or at the very least will GREATLY reduce seam ripping.

Sew up the bean sprout block to bring spring no matter the weather!!

Bean Sprout is available for sale in my Craftsy and Payhip (if you’re in the EU, please purchase through Payhip!) shops, at an introductory price of $2.50 through the weekend. Tuesday morning EST, it will go up to its standard price of $4.50.

I pushed spring into summer with my latest version of the block, using Cotton + Steel teals and coral that remind me of watermelon. I wanted to show the versatility of the color possibilities with this true-to-life block. While my brain initially goes to the greens and blues true to real life bean sprouts and summer sky, there are many other combinations that could work well to make the block shine! (For the avid gardeners among you, yes, I know the seedling shown is a brussel sprout plant, not a bean!)

There’s not much more exciting than seeing what others create with my patterns, so if you make this block, please use the tag #beansproutblock on social media and tag me @nightquilter. Sending an email would also work! Enjoy, spread the word, and go grow some quilts!

Love is always the key. We know that. But now we can also SEW that! Those who know me know that I am a sap for hearts and I see them literally everywhere. One of my proudest moments was the first time my daughter brought me a heart she found in nature. It was a dirty old dried up piece of orange peel that she had found in the gravel driveway, and she was filled to the brim with excitement that she had found a heart. Since then, Maddie and I (and now Max, a bit) have found countless heart rocks, heart sea glass, heart snowballs, heart leaves, and more… since truly, love is everywhere. Reminiscent story aside, today I’m excited to release my newest pattern: Love is the Key.

Love is the Key is a foundation paper pieced pattern that measures 9″ square, but with an option for a 4.5″ wide by 9″ tall version. It features a heart-topped key and is a very easy, beginner-friendly paper piecing pattern. Believe it or not, this pattern was first conceptualized and sketched almost a year ago, on my flight home from QuiltCon. It’s a mash-up of my Unlocked and Love Struck patterns, since who doesn’t need more heart-filled pattern options?

To help celebrate the month of love, this pattern release is also kicking off a pattern sale of all of my love-themed patterns, today through Valentine’s Day. That gives you ample time to sew up some love for your partner, your kids, your parents, or hey–even for yourself!

Grab Love is the Key for only $3 while you can! The prices have already been reduced in my Craftsy and Payhip shops. After Valentine’s Day, all patterns will return to their standard prices of $4.50 (but my love will still be there).

I’m also excited about a few add-on pattern features I’m hoping to release soon. Most likely not by Valentine’s Day, but soon you will be able to stitch up a flying heart key, and will have top and bottom options for a “create your own adventure” key. So much fun. So much love.

I have had a bunch of tutorial ideas on the back burner for quite some time. Even the best ideas, without a babysitter and a day with sufficient bright light for photographing, get stuck on the back burner sometimes. My friends Stephanie and Michelle over at Late Night Quilter are kicking off a new link-up for quilter bloggers called Tips & Tutorials Tuesday, which is the perfect kick in the pants motivator to get me sharing some of those tips and tutorials I’ve been wanting to share with you for months.

Did you know that I have a few tutorials available now? If you click the “Tutorials” heading on the top toolbar of my blog, it will take you to a collection of my tutorials. Today, I thought I’d feature the tutorials I’ve created so far.

Key to My Heart

My most recent tutorial goes along with a pattern I released recently for Valentine’s Day (or any other purpose, since you can fussy cut anything you want for the center of the heart) called Key to My Heart. It’s a quick and easy pattern that includes paper piecing to help perfect the accuracy and placement of the features within the heart, and applique to make the heart-part easy peasy! The tutorial takes you through each step with photographs to help clarify the instructions.

You can find the tutorial HERE and buy the pattern for only $2 on Craftsy or Payhip. (See below for information about a killer sale I’m offering for the next week).

Basic Foundation Paper Piecing

Since I design paper piecing patterns, I thought it would be a great help to create a basic foundation paper piecing tutorial. I absolutely love the accuracy, perfection, and endless possibility of designs that paper piecing brings you, but I know that it is a struggle for some. Once I wrapped my brain around the fact that I was sewing something backwards while looking through a mirror, it all clicked. Hopefully my tutorial is helpful to those of you who perhaps want to paper piece, but don’t quite know where to begin. Here are some sneak peeks at the tutorial, which you can find HERE.

Perfect 1/4″ Seams

The third and final tutorial is more of a tip. It’s just one of the little tricks I’ve found to help sew accurate 1/4″ seams. As extraneous as it may seem, I’ve found that taking the extra few minutes to cut accurately and employ little tricks to help ensure your seams are consistent throughout your project really makes a HUGE difference with the outcome. Read the tip HERE and let me know what you think!

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Finally, since Valentine’s Day is only four days away, and in celebration of all of my new followers, I am having a flash sale for the next week: buy any three (3) patterns for only $4. Patterns usually range from $2.50-$4.50 so this is definitely a deal! Since coupon codes and open offers such as this one aren’t really compatible with Craftsy, if you buy three patterns, I will immediately refund the difference from $4, so you will be paying only $4 for three patterns of your choice. Visit my Craftsy store HERE. For interested international buyers, if you see a pattern on Craftsy that is not available in myPayhip store, email me at thenightquilter@gmail.com and I will be sure to get the pattern either up on Payhip or emailed directly to you.

I hope you find these tutorials helpful, and I’m looking forward to sharing more tips and tutorials in the future. I’m linking up with my fellow Late Night Quilters for Tips & Tutorials Tuesday. Go check out some of the other great tips, too!

About Me

I’m a stay at home mom of three littles, wife, sewist of quilts and other beautiful things, knitter, gardener, yogi, and all in all lover of life. With three little kids, my only sewing time is after bedtime. Thus the Night Quilter was born. This blog is all about my stitching: both quilting and knitting projects, as well as the creation of my own patterns and any other inspiration I find along the way.

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All images, text, and content on this site are the sole property of Kitty Wilkin of Night Quilter and may not be reproduced, copied, derived, displayed, sold, republished, or transmitted without my permission. I reserve all exclusive rights.
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